When Harbaugh, Baalke argue, few find it worrisome

Updated 2:40 pm, Saturday, December 21, 2013

Photo: Paul Sakuma, Associated Press

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San Francisco 49ers general manager Trent Baalke, right, smiles with head coach Jim Harbaugh, left, during the team's NFL football training camp in Santa Clara, Calif., Wednesday, April 18, 2012. Apparently, there are no hard feelings on Baalke's part regarding the Saints' targeting of San Francisco players in their bounty program. Baalke recently reached out to suspended former New Orleans defensive coordinator Gregg Williams to discuss the matter. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma) less

San Francisco 49ers general manager Trent Baalke, right, smiles with head coach Jim Harbaugh, left, during the team's NFL football training camp in Santa Clara, Calif., Wednesday, April 18, 2012. Apparently, ... more

Photo: Paul Sakuma, Associated Press

When Harbaugh, Baalke argue, few find it worrisome

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Ten minutes into his initial meeting with 49ers CEO Jed York and general manager Trent Baalke nearly three years ago, then-Stanford coach Jim Harbaugh had a pressing question: "Do you mind if I put in a dip?"

Mind? Please. Baalke joined him.

Recalled York in February: "(Jim) throws one in, Trent throws one in and I'm like, 'This is over.' They ended up talking for another six hours. ... Those guys were just talking ball and we're just talking philosophy. You could see there was a mutual respect for each other. They can do different things, but combined they can put together a special product."

Indeed, 35 months later, Harbaugh, the 2011 NFL Coach of the Year, and Baalke, the 2011 Executive of the Year, have teamed to help the 49ers produce a 34-11 record, two divisional titles and a Super Bowl appearance.

Early in their relationship, which overlapped with the 2011 NFL lockout, a picture emerged of two maniacally competitive kindred spirits. Harbaugh and Baalke often bonded over take-no-prisoners racquetball games.

After a head-to-head meeting, Baalke said to Sports Illustrated: "We both came out of it with pulled muscles in our rear ends, but winning that match was important to us both."

The Harbaugh-Baalke partnership, however, hasn't been all Copenhagen and out-of-the-office competition. A recent San Jose Mercury News article on their "creative tension" made their dynamic a topic last week, but a member of the 49ers' organization openly acknowledged the occasional friction between the two before last season's Super Bowl.

That person: York.

"They both get to the same place, I'd say, 95 percent of the time," York said. "But they take different paths to get there. And the 5 percent where they don't? That's always very entertaining to see those conversations. But they fight with each other and they push each other because they both want to win."

Those squabbles could be relevant, given Harbaugh's contract status. He's in the third season of a five-year, $25 million contract, and York said Wednesday on KNBR that he wants to sit down with the coach in the offseason to hammer out an extension.

Baalke has the final say on the 53-man roster after training camp, meaning he could have had the last word in some of those testy conversations since 2011. Could that be an issue when contract talks are broached? York said differences with Baalke haven't prompted Harbaugh to pine for more power when it comes to personnel decisions.

"He's never asked for that," York said. "He's never intimated any of that. I mean, it's easy to say, it's easy to speculate: 'Well, he was in college and he had full control and he wants full control here.' That sounds great until you actually get to reality.

"And Jim's never really asked for that. Now, do we butt heads on players from time to time? Of course; that's what coaches and GMs do. But Jim knows that being a coach is a full-time job, and he has a lot respect for the job that Trent has done."

Last week, both Harbaugh and Baalke were asked about the status of their relationship. On Thursday, Harbaugh began by calling it "good" before quickly shifting the focus.

"It's the 49er Way," he said. "It's the team, the team, the team. Everybody does a little and it adds up to be a lot. Nobody above the team. Nobody more important. Nobody less important."

Said Baalke on Friday on 95.7 FM: "It's no different than it's been since day one. I think every relationship changes to a certain degree. It's very professional. He's got a job to do. I've got a job to do. We try to do that together and we do it well together."

And, despite any friction, it appears they'll continue to do their jobs, together, indefinitely. Last year, Baalke signed a three-year contract extension that will keep with him with the 49ers through 2016. Harbaugh says he "absolutely" wants to stay with the 49ers long-term.

Three years after they shared a dip and a six-hour conversation, the honeymoon may be over. But their partnership is firmly intact, Baalke said.

"You're not going to always agree," he said. "And I don't know that that's healthy, always agreeing and always being on the exact same page. I do believe there's times when that isn't going to happen. And that's OK."

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